Some women have lost their ability to produce their own oocytes due to ovariectomy, following chemotherapy or radiotherapy, premature menopause, or poor responders. For these women, the only solution to have a baby is oocyte donation. This means they have to undergo IVF using their husband's sperm and oocytes from an anonymous donor.

The oocyte donor may be

• Women who offer their oocytes altruistically
• Women with many oocytes who already participate in an IVF program and who wish to donate a number of these oocytes to another woman (egg sharing).

Modern technology allows cryopreservation of unfertilized oocytes, but it is preferable to fertilize the oocytes when they are fresh.

Egg sharing

A women undergoing IVF treatment who end up with many oocytes after oocyte collection may chose to donate a portion of her eggs to an anonymous recipient. Women who agree to donate some of their oocytes will have a significant reduction in the fees of their current treatment cycle. However, certain criteria must be met, and these can be discussed with the scientific staff of Eugonia. According to the literature, women who donate a portion of their oocytes have the same chances of getting pregnant after IVF compared to women who keep all their oocytes.

If you wish to donate some of your oocytes for our egg-sharing scheme, please let us know when you commence your treatment. We will supply you with a special informed consent form which you and your partner will have to sign. You may recall your decision at any time before oocyte retrieval.

Egg donation

In egg donation, an anonymous woman donates all her oocytes to one or more recipients. The donor must undergo ovarian stimulation for development of multiple follicles, and oocyte retrieval. According to the Greek law, the donor is compensated for any clinical or traveling expenses, and lost work hours.

If you wish to become an egg donor, please contact our Unit for more information.